Lepore was an assistant state attorney in the Colorado Attorney General’s Office from October 2009 through June 2011, before joining Beatty & Wozniak. He’s spent nearly 20 years focusing on natural resource and environmental law.

“We’re pleased to have Matt at the Commission’s helm as it balances responsible energy development and protecting the natural beauty of Colorado,” Hickenlooper said in the announcement. “Matt is a longtime Coloradan whose love and appreciation of the outdoors and experience with legal and natural resource issues make him an ideal leader for the Commission. We expect Matt and the Commission to maintain the high standards that protect the environment and help Colorado’s economy to continue moving forward.”

One of the top issues facing Lepore will be local governments’ concerns that the state’s regulation of oil and gas operations doesn’t go far enough. The industry’s interest in drilling in Front Range counties — including some that haven’t had drilling rigs for decades — has risen in the last few years as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (fracking) technology has unlocked previously uneconomic reserves.

Several Front Range municipal governments have spent months reviewing, and in some cases rewriting, their land-use regulations governing the energy industry.

On Monday, July 30, the office of Colorado Attorney General John Sutherssued the city of Longmont,

saying its new oil and gas regulations, approved in mid-July, stepped on the state’s authority to regulate the industry.

Lepore said in an interview that he looks forward to engaging “actively and quickly with the local jurisdictions” — a process he credited the COGCC’s acting director, Thom Kerr, and other staff members with starting.

“I think we can work constructively and cooperatively — and I think there’s a learning curve for both sides to figure out the best way to do that,” Lepore said.

But he said the state’s lawsuit against Longmont is needed.

“I think it is necessary, and perhaps timely, to seek guidance from the courts,” Lepore said. “In the preemption arena, there’s a lot of uncertainty. Longmont was pretty open about wanting to push the boundary, and I think the state wants to get a little bit of clarity about the number of issues raised in the lawsuit.”

Lepore will oversee a staff of 70 and work with the nine-member oil and gas commission.

Mike Chiropolos, chief counsel for the lands program at Boulder’s Western Resource Advocates — which has pushed for more distance between drilling rigs and homes — said the organization looks forward to working with Lepore.

“We look forward to working with Matt on priorities such as shaping a strong new rule on drilling setbacks from residences and schools,” Chiropolos said in an interview. “We expect him to be open to finding ways for better planning of the drilling footprint involving local government and landowners, and a baseline water quality and monitoring program to better protect Colorado’s most precious natural resource.”

Chiropolos said he was concerned that Lepore’s recent work has revolved around representing oil and gas companies in the private sector, and defending Colorado’s rules and regulations as an assistant state’s attorney.

“Generally, candidate qualifications for this key position should include an independent regulatory background and proven track record advocating for the public interest,” Chiropolos said.